Rhythm 'n' Face

The brainchild of graphic artist/techno musician Osamu Sato, the musical Simon game Rhythm 'n Face calls itself a "new wave of RPG": that is, R(hythm)P(aint Action)G(ame). Sato credits the humble PlayStation controller as the inspiration for the title. "I thought there should be a game where you push the triangle button and you get a triangle," states Sato, and the game controls consist of exactly that. The CPU draws a picture of a face using only circles, triangles and squares in beat to the musical accompaniments, and the player then attempts to replicate the results in time to the music. Improvising will net the player "Art" bonus points, and the type of music varies rapidly and radically from trial to trial. Recreating the CPU's sample face, right down to every movement of geometric shapes, will also result in a major bonus point. The game, styled after musical interaction titles made popular in Japanese arcades in the late '90s, is a study in club kitsch, with graphics reminiscent of Jesus Jones album covers. The game music is laced with samples of everything from Beethoven concertos to Eric Sati tracks, and all musical arrangements were supervised by Sato.